The Avro Arrow is a topic that has fascinated Canadians since its controversial cancellation in 1959. However, in the last ten years the narrative has changed dramatically from an American plot to ruin our aerospace industry to a decision made by the Canadian government based on very real calculations about the security threat to North America and the changing defence landscape of the late 1950s. In this episode we talk with Alan Barnes who has recently uncovered some incredible research that shows how important Canadian intelligent services were to the decision to cancel the Avro Arrow project. Alan has clearly uncovered that not only was the cancellation of the Arrow a highly calculated move by the Diefenbaker government but Canada’s newly established intelligence services played a key role in helping the Canadian government predict the future of defence issues which in turn spelled the end of the Arrow project.
Alan Barnes was an analyst and a manager of analysts in the Canadian intelligence community for over 25 years. He served as a military intelligence officer, and as the Middle East analyst in the Political Intelligence Division of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. Mr. Barnes moved to the Intelligence Assessment Secretariat (IAS) of the Privy Council Office when that organization was formed in 1993 and was the Director of the IAS Middle East and Africa Division from 1995 until his retirement in 2011. Mr. Barnes played a key role in the IAS's efforts to improve analytical tradecraft and in the training of new analysts. Since his retirement Mr. Barnes has continued his work on issues related to intelligence assessment. He is currently researching the history of strategic intelligence in Canada since 1945 and is Project Co-Leader of the Canadian Foreign Intelligence History Project (CFIHP).
CFIHP is a collaborative effort to encourage the study of foreign intelligence in Canada and to facilitate access to archival records on this subject. By working together, researchers have a better chance of overcoming the many challenges associated with working in this field.
Get add free content at Patreon!Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S7E5 – The Forgotten Fourth Arm – The Merchant Navy’s Fight for Recognition
S7E4 We Notorious! Canadian Hip Hop in the 20th Century
S7E3 – Africville
S7E2 – Welcome! Welcome! A History of Halifax’s Pier 21
S7E1 – The Longest War: A Brief History of Canada in Afghanistan
*Special Episode* – Dr. Crystal Fraser and Residential Schools in Canada
S6E19 Canadian Audiences and The Birth of a Nation
S6E18 The Seaborn Missions to North Vietnam
S6E17 The Fruit Machine
S6E16 The Canal That Never Was
S6E15 Canada’s First Spree Killer
S6E14 Bill Miner – The Gentleman Robber Part 2
S6E13 Bill Miner – The Gentleman Robber – Part One
S6E12 The Mystery of Capreol’s Mass Grave
S6E11 Laying Down the Law – Canadian Civil Affairs and the Belgian Resistance
S6E10 Give Peace a Chance – John and Yoko Come to Canada
S6E9 A Nation of Our Own – The Six Nations Appeal to the League of Nations
S6E8 The Famous Five and the Persons Case
S6E7 The Fight for History with Dr. Tim Cook
S6E6 Whose Side Are You On Anyways? The Canadian Response to the Suez Crisis
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Irish Songs with Ken Murray
History Obscura
Historycal: Words that Shaped the World
The Rest Is History
Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra